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70 TEACHER OCTOBER 2010
I'm no expert or scholar in cultural and reli-
gious matters; neither am I a Muslim, but I do
teach in an Islamic school, where I work with
extremely generous and kind-hearted staff
and students, so it baffles me when I hear
anti-Muslim sentiments being expressed.
Having lived abroad for nearly 14 years,
both in Singapore and the United States,
and having travelled the world countless
times over as a professional tennis coach
on the Association of Tennis Professionals
(ATP) world tour, I've met numerous people
and experienced numerous cultures.
There's a time to call it quits on the ATP
world tour, though, and when my time came
I completed a Masters in Teaching at the
University of Melbou rne, and was fortunate
enough to begin my new teaching career at
the beginning of this year at Ilim College
-- an independent Prep to Year 12 Islamic
school in Melbourne with an enrolment of
1,000 or so students.
Coming from a non-Islamic background,
I was both excited and frankly apprehensive
about what this year had in store for me, not
least because I was a 'beginning' teacher,
and we can all remember that harrowing
experience, but also because I was walking
into a culture with which I was to an extent
unfamiliar.
I needn't have worried. I've been wel-
comed overwhelmingly by the entire staff
at Ilim College. I've seen wa r mth, open-
ness, real care and tr ue collegiality -- and
no faculty rivalry or political in-fighting.
The predomina ntly Muslim staff has
accepted me from the get-go and I im me-
diately felt that I was a part of the Ilim
College 'family.'
COMING FROM A NON-ISLAMIC BACKGROUND, ANDREW TURCINOVICH WAS A LITTLE
APPREHENSIVE WHEN HE GOT A TEACHING JOB IN AN ISLAMIC SCHOOL. HERE, HE
EXPLAINS WHY HE NEEDN'T HAVE BEEN WORRIED.
Teaching in an
Islamic school